Suddenly I See
by Madaboutagirl
Summary: Welcome to Offscreenville, this one is set just after 11.20. Basically, a discussion on Tumblr about this scene prompted me to write this, so here you are my little Calzona fiends, I'm not sure where it's going, but trust the processing, the ever-loving lesbian processing... oh & not my characters, they belong to Miss Shonda & ABC...
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Tumblr prompt got me to write this one shot... but really, I do go back to work tomorrow, so don't expect regular updates...**

 _"Why didn't you tell me?"_

 _"Hmm?"_

 _"About Alex. And my leg."_

 _"Fricking Karev."_

 _"Don't be mad at him."_

 _"He's an idiot. I was trying to protect him, but why did he have to..?_

 _"All this time, you let me hold it against you. Why?"_

 _"I made the call. No matter what it was still me, making the call to take your leg. And I knew you were going to hate me. I didn't want you to hate Alex too. I wanted you to have somebody."_

Replaying the conversation in head again, Arizona sits in her car just down the street from their house. She drove over here to confront Callie again, but now she thinks she should wait and talk with her therapist first. Unable to get past the fact that she's been stuck on this and now finds out that it wasn't even true. Callie didn't amputate her leg, Alex did. She can understand Alex being able to do it. But she could never understand how Callie could do it and now it turns out that she didn't.

* * *

In Dr Dawson's office the next day, Arizona recounts the exchange again.

"What does it mean to you that Callie authorized Alex to remove your leg instead of her doing it herself?" Dawson asks.

Pausing a moment to collect her thoughts, Arizona begins. "Making the decision to have the leg amputated is one thing, but actually doing it is something else. Do you know what it takes to amputate a leg at the femur? It's not an easy surgery. And to do that to a loved one, even to save their life would still be very difficult emotionally and physically. I just never understood how she could've done that and not been affected. Now I understand, it's because she didn't do it. Now it makes more sense. Everything makes more sense."

"What would have changed, had you known the truth?' Dawson asks.

"I still would have been angry because she promised not to amputate, but I don't think I would have found her actions and demeanor to be so disturbing, if I'd have known that she didn't actually do the surgery." Arizona explains.

"What about Alex? Was she correct in her assumption that you would have hated him for removing your leg?", The therapist asks.

"I-I'm not sure. Alex is Alex. He sees things very black and white. And he wouldn't have made the promise. Callie promised and yes, I know that she promised that as more as my wife than as my doctor. And I don't know what I would have done or said, if she hadn't of made that promise." Arizona says still trying to process. "I would have been angry at him, but I think I would've understood eventually."

"Arizona in the two years that we've been working on this, you've worked past almost everything but this is where you always get stuck. Do you still feel stuck?" Dawson asks.

"I'm stuck now for a totally different reason. Why would she lie about that? I've held it against her this whole time. I've said unforgivable things to her because of it. I don't know how I could ever make it up to her, Dr Dawson." Arizona says tearfully. "There's no apology that could ever be enough to make up for the way I acted and the things that I said. Now I'm angry with her for lying to me. I'm not proud of how I treated her, but what she did to protect me, caused more harm to us than the truth ever could have." The blonde admits sadly, tears still running down her face.

"If you could talk to her about this again, what would you say?" Dawson asks, attempting to get the blonde to move forward.

Considering the question, Arizona grabs a tissue and dabs at her eyes.

"I'm not sure. I think I would let her know that I understand that she was scared, terrified even and she did her best in an unbelievable situation. Obviously, I don't agree with her actions or her decisions, but I also can't imagine being in that situation." The blonde says dabbing her eyes again. "All I know now, is that I need to let it go. And I need to apologize to her, no matter how inadequate it is, I still need to say it."

* * *

"Arizona?" Alex knocks softly on her door.

"I'm fine Alex." She says quickly, not really wanting to talk to anyone yet.

Pushing the door open a bit, he sticks his head in, "I'm not." He says simply. "Can I please talk to you a minute?"

"Oh okay?" She says, moving the covers so that she's covered up. If he wants to talk about the amputation, the least she do is not make him look at it during the conversation. "Come in."

Leaning in the doorway, he takes a moment to collect himself. He's not used to expressing his feelings and these have been buried deep for a while now. Suddenly, he comes over to the bed and sits down. "Arizona, I'm sorry that you lost your leg and I'm sorry that I'm the one who did it. I-I need you to know that it was one of the hardest things that I've ever had to do, but I would do it again, if it meant saving your life." He admits tearfully.

Taken aback by this side of Alex, the side he hides from everyone, but one that she's seen once or twice. Arizona reaches up to wipe a tear from his face. "Alex, it's okay. I understand and for what it's worth, I'm sorry that you had to do it too." She says caressing his face. In all the years of their friendship, they've never been touchy or feeling. But she sees how much pain that he's in and she can't help but try to comfort him.

Looking down for a moment as he tries to collect himself, "Look whatever you need me to do, I'll do it. If you want Peds back and you need me to go, then I'll go. I- I owe you everything. And I mean everything. Please just tell me what you need me to do?" He pleads.

Now she's crying, "Damn it Karev." She says as she reaches out to pull him to her. "You stay. I can't lose you now."


	2. Chapter 2

"Karev!" Callie calls out to him in the parking lot.

Dropping his head, he knows she's going to blast him for telling Arizona the truth.

"What the hell were you thinking? Why did you tell her?" Callie asks as soon as she's face to face with him.

"Honestly? I couldn't take her not knowing the truth. Callie you know that I hate lying and while I understood why you asked me to do it, I just couldn't continue to lie to her. She deserved to know the truth." He counters.

"Honestly? Do you honestly know what you've done?" Callie says angrily. "I don't even know what to do. Is she okay? Did you see her?"

"We talked last night. She's okay. I mean, as far as we go, she and I are okay." He says visibly relieved. "Look, I have surgery, I have to go. Good luck though, I mean it."

"Thanks." Callie says grimacing.

* * *

"Hey Callie, what's up. Meredith says as Callie enters the daycare to check on Sofia. "We just got here. Did something happen with Arizona?"

"Yes, well no." Callie pauses, unsure whether to tell Meredith what happened. "I'm not sure what's going on with Arizona. I just thought maybe she would want to talk last night, but she didn't. At least not to me. I'm sorry for having you take Sofia, I know this week was hard for you too." Callie says apologizing.

"It's okay. Amelia did all the work actually. And you know the girls are great together. It wasn't a big deal." Meredith admits.

* * *

"Hey, how are you?" Amelia asks as she enters the locker room and sees Arizona staring off.

"Oh, hey Amelia. I'm good." The blonde responds, taking a moment to look at her friend.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Amelia asks sitting down beside her. "I mean, Sofia was at our house last night, so I'm assuming that this has to do with Callie?"

"What? She was? Oh, I didn't know that." Arizona says slightly concerned. "Thank you for asking, but if I talk to you about it, then my therapist will be disappointed." She adds smiling.

"Just know that I'm here if you need me." Amelia reminds her.

"I know that, Amelia. And thank you for taking care of Sofia last night." Arizona says standing up and squeezing her arm as she moves around her.

* * *

"What do I do?" Callie asks Owen after she tells him the whole story. Somehow she knew that he would understand.

"Callie, there's nothing you can do. It's obvious what you did and why, you just need to wait and see what she does with it." He says leaning up against the desk in his office. "Now Karev says that he talked to her and she's fine. Is she still in therapy?"

"Oh, I don't know actually if she is. Therapy wasn't really her thing, then there was the whole breakup that happened in therapy." Callie reminds him.

"Right, well look. I'd just act normal and see how she reacts to you. But you don't need to apologize. You did what you thought was best for her at the time, she almost died. She lived and it's because you made the right call. Just remember that." He says clapping her on the shoulder.

* * *

Later in the cafeteria, Callie sits with Meredith and Bailey, but she keeps an eye on the door for Arizona.

The two doctors are discussing a case, but they can't help glancing at the door to see who Callie is waiting for.

Suddenly Callie stands up. "I'll see you later. Meredith are we still on for that drink after work?" Callie asks.

"Yes, Amelia and Maggie are taking the kids tonight. I'm not sure what that's about, but they offered. And I'm not about to turn down free babysitting." Meredith explains.

"Okay, sounds good. I'll meet you there." Callie says, obviously not listening as she walks away.

At the door, Meredith and Bailey watch as Callie manages to run right into Arizona, practically knocking her over in the process.

"Oh shit, Arizona. I'm so sorry. I-I uh, wasn't paying attention." Callie stammers.

"It's fine. I'm fine, really." Arizona says impatiently.

"Are you though, fine?" Callie can't help but ask.

Looking around, Arizona sees everyone staring at them, so she grabs Callie's arm and pulls her down the hall out of the view of the cafeteria. "We need to have a conversation, but it's not going to happen here or anywhere in this hospital." Arizona replies.

"Okay, so where and when would you like to meet for this conversation?" Callie asks carefully.

"How about after work in the park, on the bench?" Arizona suggests.

Caught off guard a moment, considering she know exactly which bench the blonde is referring to. "Okay, let me know when you're free and I'll meet you there." Callie replies.

* * *

The rest of the day, Callie spends in the lab, barely able to focus. She keeps replaying the conversation from the other day and she keeps seeing Arizona's face as she says 'thanks' and walks away. I should have gone after her, Callie thinks second-guessing herself. But she probably needed time to think it through. She always needs time to do that, so it's good that I didn't go after her. I gave her space. But what if she didn't want space? Callie considers again. She forgave Karev, maybe she wants to forgive me too? But wait, I shouldn't get my hopes up about that, she's probably mad. I should be prepared for her to be mad. I can deal with mad, hell that's the one Arizona that I seem to see most often, she reminds herself. Well, but the last six months its been sad Arizona, which is harder to see. Damn it Callie, get it together and get some work done, she says reminding herself that she needs to just let it go and wait and see what happens.

After an hour of actually working, Callie is interrupted by her phone buzzing. Glancing over at it, she sees a message from Arizona -

"I finished early, can you get away now?"

Looking at the table in front of her, she sighs. Knowing the interruption has just ruined her focus, she may as well go meet her now, grabbing the phone she replies, "sure. I'm leaving now."

* * *

Approaching the park, Callie is surprised to see that Arizona is already there.

"Hey," she says sitting down beside the blonde.

Smiling tightly, Arizona looks at the brunette and takes a breath and holds it a minute.

"Thank you for meeting me Calliope." Arizona says finally.

Callie can't help but search her face for signs of how this is going to play out. She doesn't see anger, she sees sadness.

"I need to say somethings to you and I know that it probably won't make a difference to you, but it will make a difference to me and I need that now more than anything else." She begins. "I want to apologize for all of the horrible things I said to you when I thought that you had performed the amputation. I couldn't reconcile your behavior with your actions and so in my pain, I thought the worst of you and for that I am so so sorry." Arizona says tearfully. Looking up, she tries to catch her breath so she can keep it together and say everything that she wants to say.

"Arizona, it's..." Callie begins.

"Wait, don't say it's fine or okay or anything like that. Because it's just not okay. We are not okay." She says sharply. Then softening a little she adds, "Callie you were in an impossible position and you did everything you could to save my leg. I know that. I really know that. And I'm sorry that I made you promise not to amputate it, but I was so scared, you have no idea how dark it was where I was after the plane crash."

Now Callie is crying. They both sit there a minute, trying to center themselves. This is a conversation that is long overdue and they both have so much to say to each other.

"Can I just say, one thing?" Callie asks tentatively.

Nodding, Arizona takes a deep breath and waits.

"It does make a difference to me, Arizona." Callie admits to her. "I'm so sorry that I was too scared to tell you the truth."

Taking a deep breathe again, the blonde looks at her. She can't help but feel relief. They are finally listening to each other.

"Callie, don't apologize for being scared. I can only imagine what you were going through. You had Mark dying and I wasn't doing much better. You never should have been in that position." She adds sadly. "I can't tell you that knowing the truth would have made a difference, would it have kept us together? I don't know. Would I still have cheated on you? I would like to say no, but honestly I don't know. What I do know is that I've spent a lot of time stuck on the fact that you promised not to amputate and then went ahead and did it. That is time that I wish that I could have back, because it was spent making me miserable over something that wasn't even true." Arizona says angrily.

The brunette can't help but cry at this admission. This is her fault and if she had understood what was going on, she would have admitted the truth, if only she had known.

"I don't understand how you didn't just explode with the truth after one of the many times that I threw it in your face." The blonde says tearfully, "Why did you just take it? You didn't deserve it Callie. Why, why would you let me say those things and hurt you like that?"

"Because they were true in a sense. I did promise you that I wouldn't amputate your leg and then your leg was amputated by my order. So I did fail you, Arizona. I failed. I deserved everything that you said and more." Callie says breaking down.

"No, no you didn't. You didn't deserve any of it, Callie." Arizona says pulling her into her arms. Softly she whispers into her ear, "You lost so much in that plane crash and you shouldn't have lost anything, none of us should have."

"I'm sorry. You shouldn't have to do this for me." Callie says pulling away embarrassed that she broke down.

"Callie, that's not true. I owe you everything. You saved my life in so, so many ways."

"I-I always thought that I ruined your life. First I took away your dream of Africa, then I took your leg." Callie says softly.

"You didn't take away Africa, it was bad timing. And the leg was lost due to a plane crash, not you." Arizona says firmly.

"Callie, you've made my life worth living. Stranded in the woods after that plane crash, all I wanted was to get home to you and Sofia. I never once wanted to die out there, I just prayed and prayed that I would make it home to you. And I never even thought of praying before I knew you." She confesses. "Even on my darkest days after the amputation, I never wanted to die. I was just angry that I lost my leg and I couldn't understand why that happened to me."

Still holding each other, the two women pause and look into each other's eyes. Arizona smiles shyly first. Then Callie.

"It's been too long since we've talked like this." Callie says softly.

"We've spent way too much time not talking about this." Arizona agrees, looking steadily into Callie's eyes. "Would it be weird if I kissed you right now?"

"I think it would be weird if we didn't kiss right now." Callie replies dipping her head and moving to place her lips gently on Arizona's.

Tenderly, the blonde kisses her back. "I've missed you so much," she whispers.

"I feel like I finally have you back, really have you back." Callie says pulling the blonde in tighter and deepening the kiss.

Pulling back, Arizona looks carefully at Callie and then says, "I love you Calliope, I never stopped and I really want us to try again."

"I think we should try again too." Callie says, then adds, "Breaking up with you was the hardest thing I've ever done especially since I love you so much."


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: okay two short chapters, I've found a groove to continue this one, but not sure how far it will go!**

* * *

"I can't believe that you stood me up." Meredith says the next morning when she sees Callie in daycare. "I had to drink with Owen. You really suck Torres."

"Mer, I'm so so sorry. Something came up." Callie says trying to explain. "Owen's not so bad. I've had drinks with him before.

"No it didn't. I checked, you had no surgeries last night." She counters. "But with me, she cries about Cristina all night. She left me too!"

"You're right. It was something else." Callie admits. "And I'm sorry."

Pulling the brunette out into the hall, Meredith asks, "Something or someone? Blonde, about so high?"

Sheepishly, Callie looks down.

"Meredith, I owe you big time. Like I will take Zola and Bailey for a whole weekend, big time." Callie says, still not telling her why she stood her up.

"Callie! What happened last night? Zola said you and Arizona picked up Sofia." Meredith continues trying to get her to talk.

"You made your 4 year old daughter spy for you?" Callie says feigning shock. "Look, you'll be the first to know, once I figure it out. Okay?" Callie says reassuring her.

* * *

"Where were you last night? I thought you had Sofia?" Alex asks Arizona as they stand in front of the surgical board.

"I did have Sofia last night, I just stayed with her at the house." Arizona replies.

"Oh, so Callie was out?" He asks.

"Hmm, hey do you want to scrub in on this fetal hernia? I could use another set of hands." The blonde replies, deftly changing the subject.

"Yeah, sure. But don't think that I didn't notice that you didn't answer the question." Karev says following her down the hall.

* * *

"Hello Dr Torres." Arizona says in the hallway before she enters the OR to scrub.

"Hello Dr Robbins." Callie replies, trying very hard not to smile too broadly.

"Okay that was beyond weird, even for you two. What is going on?" Alex asks after watching the exchange.

"Have you guys talked about the other day?" He asks.

Leaning into the sink as she scrubs her hands and arms, Arizona looks confused. "What are you asking me Alex?"

"The other day, you know!" He says frustrated. "Look Callie was freaking out on me in the parking lot about telling you the truth about the amputation. Have the two of you talked about it? I don't want to be in the middle of it, but I am. So did you?"

"We did." Arizona says as she ties up her mask, conveniently so he can't see her smile.

"So are you back together now or what?" He asks, still irritated about it.

"Definitely somewhere between back together and or what." Arizona says after pausing a moment.

* * *

"It's been a while Callie, what brings you in today? Dawson asks.

"Thank you for fitting me in. Arizona found out that I lied to her about something and she's angry but also we spent the night together." Callie blurts out.

"Let's talk about the lie first. What did you lie about and why?" the therapist prompts.

"I was not the surgeon who removed the leg. I was in another surgery when Arizona went into septic shock and another surgeon, one of close friends, actually performed the amputation." Callie says exhaling loudly, "It feels really good to get that out. Lying is not really my thing." She explains.

"Then why, why did you lie about this Callie?"

"Arizona had made me promise not to amputate her leg. And honestly, I would have promised her anything at that point, she'd been through utter hell and did not deserve to lose her leg too. But the infection that she got from the open fracture in the woods was too strong. We couldn't get it under control and finally it was a choice. Remove the leg, remove the infection and she lives. Keep the leg, keep the infection and she dies." The brunette explains. "But I knew that she would be upset and devastated to lose the leg and I knew much of that would be aimed at me, so I let her believe that I amputated her leg."

As Callie talks, she is literally sitting on the edge of her seat. Trying to sort everything out in her head. Probably for the first time since it all happened, Dawson observes. Then nodding at her, she waits for her to continue.

"I deserved the anger. I promised her something and I failed to make good on it. She would need her friends to get through this so I couldn't let her know that Alex did the amputation." Callie explains, looking over to the therapist nervously.

"And now what do you think about that decision?" Dawson explores.

"Now I realize that the surgery itself was part of what worried Arizona. She didn't want me to perform the amputation. And I get that. I may do this for a living, but I don't know how I would feel today, if I had been the one to actually amputate her leg. I know that I'd have done it, because it was the only way to save her life, but I don't know what it would've felt like to see her struggle afterward. And that's probably why Alex told her. He couldn't live with it either and especially could live with lying about it." Callie says finally sitting back a bit and relaxing.

"Is it possible that when Arizona made you promise not to amputate, that she actually meant she didn't want you to do the surgery? She is a doctor, she knew how sick she was. She knew how bad the infection was, is it possible that she was trying to spare you that and not that she wanted to keep her leg no matter what?"

Stunned at the question. Callie sits completely back on the couch. Mouth open, eyes wide. "I-I don't know."

After speaking with Arizona earlier in the week, Dawson was not surprised to get the call from Callie. In fact, she rescheduled another patient, just to fit the doctor in today. And now she's pleased with herself, we may have finally found the sticking point that has been blocking the two women's communication for over two years.

"Callie, would it be okay if we stop here today? I think this is a significant point that we really need to examine thoroughly. Can you come back this week?"

"Y-yes, let's set it up." She says shakily.


	4. Chapter 4

"How are you Arizona? You look well." Dawson says greeting the blonde as she enters the office the next day.

"I'm, I'm okay." She says moving to sit down, then looking up nervously.

"Tell me what's happened since you left here the other day. Did you talk with Callie?" Dawson prompts.

"I did. It uh, it went well." Arizona says, obviously still processing the exchange. The therapist knows by now that she just has to wait a few minutes and the blonde will continue.

"I apologized for all the horrible things that I said to her when I thought that she had removed my leg. And she told me that she thought she deserved them because she failed me by removing my leg." Arizona explains.

Nodding Dawson waits for her to continue.

"I'm still angry at her for lying, but knowing that she didn't perform the amputation, well that has lifted the other anger that I had towards her. I don't think I realized how dark and deep that anger was and well, now that it's gone, I almost feel like myself again. I can't really explain it."

"What is the new anger towards Callie like?"

"It's manageable. She always tries to protect me and that generally pisses me off. I understand it, but it still pisses me off at times." The blonde explains.

"Why do you think you asked her to promise not to remove your leg? I mean, you're a doctor and you knew how bad the infection was, and obviously you knew that amputation was a distinct possibility. Yet you made her promise not to do it." Dawson can't help but ask the question that she thinks will make the biggest impact on the two women's relationship.

Silently, Arizona considers the question. It's one that she hadn't really thought about. It is true that she was aware of the scope of the infection. It was painfully obvious in the woods, that she had a raging infection. And the doctors in Boise, immediately wanted to amputate the leg. But she didn't want to lose her leg. And she thought her wife was her only chance to keep it.

"The whole time I was in the woods waiting for rescue, I knew that the infection was getting worse. But I kept thinking that Callie was the best and if anyone could save it, it would be her. And I loved that about her, that she would do everything to save my leg, if I asked her to." Arizona replies tearfully.

Reaching for the box of tissues, she dabs her eyes and looks up a moment to collect her thoughts.

"That really wasn't fair of me to ask of her, was it Dr Dawson?"

"Why do you think that, Arizona?"

"I asked her to do the impossible, then hated her because she failed." The blonde says flatly. "Oh god, I'm a monster. Why did I do that?"

Looking at the blonde, devastated by the realization, Dawson reaches over and touches her knee. "Arizona." She says softly to get her attention. "You were in shock and you were critically ill. I think it's safe to say you were in no way a monster."

Now the therapist decides to let Arizona collect herself before moving on. Getting up and crossing the room, she gets two small bottles of water from the small fridge in her office and returns to her chair. Offering one to the blonde, she then opens and takes a sip from the other one, sitting it down on the table beside her.

"Arizona, why do you think you asked Callie to not amputate your leg, when everything indicated that it may be the only way to save you from the infection?" Dawson asks softly.

Shifting forward on the couch, Arizona answers quickly, "I just didn't want her to have to do it. I mean, I know that she does it for a living. But as my wife, if she had amputated my leg, she would literally have to live with it every second of every day. I just didn't want that for me or for her."

Dawson waits for the words to sink into the blonde.

"Oh my god. That's it, isn't it?" Arizona says suddenly.

* * *

Callie nervously waits at the restaurant for Arizona. They decided to go slow and 'date' before rushing into anything certain. But after her appointment with Dawson the other day, Callie is dying for them to talk more, but she's not sure how to go about it. And at dinner in a restaurant is no place to have the conversation, so now she's worried that she won't be able to just have a casual conversation tonight.

"You look pretty tonight." Arizona says as she approaches the table.

"Thank you." Callie responds standing up to greet her and nervously hugging her. Then as they sit down, Callie looks across and gasps. "Arizona, you, uh look beautiful." She gushes awkwardly.

Smiling, the blonde looks down for a moment to collect her thoughts. Ever since leaving Dawson's office, she's wanted to talk with Callie, but this isn't the time or place for the conversation.

"Callie, I have a confession." Arizona begins.

Surprised, Callie sits back with a concerned look on her face.

"No, it's not like that. I just wanted to tell you that I'm still seeing Dr. Dawson.", the blonde explains.

"Oh. Oh, well me too." Callie says smiling in relief.

"You are?" Arizona asks surprised.

"Yes. Well, I haven't seen her regularly, but I am now. I mean, I did see her and I, uh, have another appointment.", the brunette stammers.

"Ladies, can I get you anything from the bar?" The server asks approaching the table.

"I'll have a glass of the Pinot Gris from St Michelle and she'll have... the Pinot Noir or the Malbec?" Arizona replies, then glances at Callie for her to decide which wine she wants.

"The Pinot Noir is fine." Callie says and smiles at the server. "Can we just a have a few more minutes before we order?"

Watching the server leave, Callie licks her lips nervously.

"Arizona would you consider going back to therapy with me?" Callie asks, then adds. "I totally understand if you don't. I mean, it's probably a bad idea."

"No, it's a good idea. Actually, I was going to ask you the same question.", the blonde admits, as a small smile crosses her face.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: ugh, just reread this chapter and it was a bit too rough, so I've smoothed it out. New chapter coming this week!**

* * *

Arizona sits nervously on the couch waiting for Callie to arrive.

"I'm sure she'll be here any minute. Neither of us had surgery scheduled this morning," the blonde advises.

Nodding, Dawson notices how the blonde doctor is and asks, "How are you Arizona?"

"I'm good," she replies quickly.

"You seem nervous. Would you like to talk about that while we wait for Callie?" Dawson asks.

"You know why I'm nervous," the blonde remarks, "the last couple's therapy didn't exactly workout for me." She points out.

"I get that, but that's not why you're nervous right now." Dawson says firmly, looking the blonde in the eye.

"No. No it's not." Arizona confesses.

"Hey sorry I'm late." Callie says entering the room and quickly sitting down beside Arizona on the couch. "What did I miss?" She asks looking back and forth between Dawson and the blonde.

"Nothing. We were just waiting for you." Arizona says smiling at the brunette and glancing over to the doctor nervously.

"Well let's get started. I've met with each of you separately and you both have indicated that you have something to say to the other that you'd like to do here in therapy together, so who wants to go first?" Dawson asks glancing at each woman and making eye contact separately.

"I want to go first." Arizona says nervously licking her lips.

"Calliope," Arizona begins and turns to face her, "I knew it was possible that I would lose the leg, but I didn't really admit that to you and it wasn't fair of me to make you promise not to amputate it."

Callie looks up at her tearfully, "Arizona, it was one of the hardest decision that I've ever had to make, but I knew that the infection in your leg was going to kill you and I'd rather have you alive hating me, then dead.

Arizona pauses, looking intently into those soft brown eyes, "I don't hate you. I never hated you, I just hated the way you looked at me," she tries to explain. "I was devastated to think that you had made the cut and it didn't affect you, because all I could see when I looked at you was the person who cut off my leg" she admits.

"I-I was so wrapped up in my failure to save your leg, that I didn't consider that." Callie replies, tears sliding down her face.

"You didn't fail. Callie I had an open fracture exposed for four days. The doctors in Boise probably should have amputated it right away, but I wouldn't let them. I-I just thought if anyone could save my leg, it would be you and that wasn't fair. It was too much to ask of you." Arizona confesses.

"But Arizona, I would have been devastated if I hadn't of had a chance to save your leg." Callie replies turning to her and reaching out to take her hands.

"Okay, let's take a moment here," Dawson says interrupting them. "When you first came in for couples counseling, there wasn't a lot of discussion around the amputation. But listening to you both now, it seems this has been a swift undercurrent running through your communication for a while now. How are you feeling about each other right now? Callie would you go first?"

Looking nervously at Arizona, Callie pulls her hands away and wipes them off before reaching back over and grasping them again. "Okay, I feel relief, because I thought that I had totally failed Arizona when I made the decision to remove her leg. And even though I thought I needed to lie to her, I'm relieved that I no longer need to. Also I feel empathy, because I can now imagine what she felt when we were in the car wreck and Sofia was born pre-term and she was able to care for her, but not able to care for me."

"Good Callie, now Arizona?" Dawson asks and they both turn to her.

Moving a little closer to Callie, Arizona glances over to Dawson and then back to the Latina.

"I feel relief too. All this time, I couldn't reconcile Callie's actions with her words. Now I understand why and while I am not happy that she lied to me and made Alex lie to me, I do understand why she did it. All this time, I questioned how she really felt about me based on a lie and a misunderstanding. Also, I feel very loved. For Callie to lie about this, well that shows how much she loved me."

"Okay, now ladies, I want you to look at yourselves and note your body language." Dawson says grabbing her phone and snapping a picture. "What do you see?"

"We're open to each other and connecting." They say together.

"Do you remember how you sat in here for your last couples therapy sessions?" She asks.

"We sat on opposite ends of the couch." Callie replies.

"And we mostly faced you, even when we were talking to or about each other." Arizona adds.

Nodding, Dawson waits a moment to let that sink in.

* * *

"Do you want to get some coffee?" Callie asks Arizona as they leave Dawson's office.

Pausing, Arizona looks at her phone. "I'm sorry, I need to get back to the hospital. How about dinner?"

"I have plans tonight. Maybe I could stop by afterward?" Callie suggests. "Its dinner with Meredith," she adds.

"Uh, okay. Not too late, I have an early day tomorrow." Arizona says opening up her car door.

"Arizona, wait." Callie says moving in closer.

Closing her car door, the blonde turns and pulls Callie in for a tight embrace.

Burying her face in the blonde's neck, Callie sighs.

Pulling away, so she can look into soft brown eyes, Arizona confesses, "I need this..." she says pressing her lips softly to Callie's.

"Me too." Callie replies, deepening the kiss and then pulling away reluctantly.

* * *

"What's the deal with you and Arizona?" Meredith asks taking a sip of her wine.

"We're seeing each other." Callie confesses. "And we're back in therapy."

"I can't help but notice the timing... did the plane crash trigger something?" Meredith asks.

"It did." Callie admits, then she pauses and takes a sip of her wine.

"Did you know that Alex performed the amputation on Arizona?" Callie asks her friend.

"I did, he told me later. He was afraid that she'd hate him for it." Meredith replies.

"Well, I told her it was me, so that didn't happen. But then he told her last week that it was him." Callie explains.

Taking a sip of her water, Callie continues. "Which led to her confronting me about lying to her, which actually went better than I thought it would."

"So how did this lead to you getting back together?" Meredith asks confused.

"Well once Arizona realized that I didn't actually amputate her leg, she apologized to me. Like apologized for everything." Callie adds, "I thought I failed her by not saving her leg, but it was more important to her that I not be the one to make the cut. So when she found out that I didn't do it, it changed everything."

Their conversation is interrupted by the arrival of their dinner, as the server sets their plates in front of them, Meredith takes a sip of water.

"Why is it, that when you're first together, you practically read each other's minds, but the longer you're together the more difficult it gets to communicate?" Meredith asks.

"At the beginning you're mostly thinking about having sex." Callie responds laughing.

"Okay, good point. And what to eat, so you can get back to having sex." The blonde adds.

* * *

"Is it too late?" Callie texts Arizona as she sits in her car.

"No, where are you?" Arizona asks as she reaches down for her crutches and stands up. As she opens the door, Callie enters and shuts the door behind her, leaning against it, the brunette licks her lips nervously.

"Calliope..." Arizona says moving to pin her against the door and kiss her deeply.

Pulling away, the two women pause a moment and then smile shyly. Callie bends down and picks up Arizona's crutches and then they move over to the couch and sit down.

"Um, I miss coming home to you." Callie says softly.

"I miss that too." Arizona replies.

"What do you think about you moving back to the house and staying in the guest room until we figure this out?" Callie asks.

"Uh, I'm not sure Callie. Won't that be confusing to us and to Sofia?" Arizona asks.

Exasperated Callie leans back on the couch and sighs.

"Why is this so hard?" She asks.

"Because it's important that we do this right. We may not get another chance to fix us." Arizona says softly, looking over at the brunette.

Opening her eyes and looking at the blonde, she sees the most amazing blue eyes gazing at her.

"You're right." Callie says turning her head so that she can admire the blonde. "You're beautiful Arizona."

Leaning over and resting her hand on the brunette's side, Arizona responds, "I love you Calliope."

Pulling the blonde down on top of her, Callie whispers in her hair, "I love you too."


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Previous chapter was updated prior to this one being posted.**

* * *

"It seems too soon." Arizona says the next morning to Alex.

"It's been over a year, it's not too soon," he advises. "Neither of you moved on, so what's the big deal?"

"You don't think she dated anyone? Callie doesn't do single Alex." She counters.

"When you were single, you dated half the nursing staff. But I don't think you even went out once in the last year." He points out.

"You're right. I didn't. I was too busy with the fellowship, then Herman. I never even looked at another woman." Arizona sighs.

"See. I'm sure she went out a few times, but I've seen the way she looks at you. She didn't date anyone." He replies, then adds, "Now, girl talk is over. I have rounds."

Laughing, Arizona looks up and smiles. Callie is standing down the hall talking to Owen Hunt. They both glance up at the same time and see her, then he pauses. Says something to Callie and then she looks down, then back over to Arizona.

Wondering what they could possibly be talking about, Arizona is distracted when she's paged to the ER.

Grabbing her pager, she moves out of the nurses station and towards the elevator, just as Owen walks off, leaving Callie standing there by the elevator.

"Hey," she says as Arizona approaches.

Holding up her pager, Arizona says quickly, "I just got paged to the ER." Arizona explains as she moves to get on the elevator.

"I'm going that way." Callie says swiftly moving past the closing doors to join her.

Awkwardly, they stand apart and glance at each other. "I, um, need to talk with you about something later. Maybe you're free for lunch?" Callie finally says.

"I'll let you know." Arizona replies as the door opens and she steps out.

* * *

"What do you have?" Arizona asks as she follows Kepner into the trauma room.

"Thirty-six year old pregnant female, approximately 22 weeks. The fetal heartbeat has an echo, the OB sent her right over for another ultrasound." Kepner says as they walk into the room. "James and Carolyn Woodson." She adds introducing them, "Dr Arizona Robbins, Fetal specialist."

"Is the ultrasound set up?" Arizona asks.

"Yes, I paged you then had it set up for you." Kepner replies. "Mr Woodson, would you like to step out of the room, so we can evaluate your wife and baby?"

"No, I want to stay." He says firmly.

"Mr Woodson," Arizona says turning to him. "I understand that you're scared and worried. But please just give me a few minutes to properly evaluate the situation and I promise that I will let you know exactly what is going on." She says softly as she moves him out of the trauma room and shuts the door.

"Carolyn," Arizona says turning to the woman as she begins to explain the procedure and carefully moves the screen out of the patient's view. A few minutes into the exam, Arizona takes in her breath sharply. Then glancing over at April, she nods at the screen carefully.

Looking over Arizona's shoulder, April is careful not to react to what she sees on the screen. There are two heartbeats, but only one baby can be seen on the scan.

"Okay, I'm going to step out for a few minutes and I'll be right back." Arizona says motioning for April to come with her.

Stepping into the next room, Arizona runs her hands through her hair. "You saw that, right?" She asks.

"If there are two hearts, but only one baby is visible, how is that possible?" Kepner asks.

"It's not possible." Arizona replies pacing. "We need to schedule a Level II Ultrasound right away. There has to be two babies in there if there are two heartbeats."

* * *

"What's going on? Why did you page me?" Alex asks entering the exam room.

"I want you to look at this scan and tell me what you see." Arizona replies, pointing at the monitor.

"Okay." He says moving over to the monitor and reviewing the scans. "Twins, but only one is presenting on the scan."

"That's what I thought, but then I moved to the other side." Arizona says, showing him the next set of scans.

"Not possible. You've got to redo the ultrasound." Alex replies.

"I have the Fetal Anomaly scan scheduled in half an hour, can you sit in on it with me?" She asks.

* * *

"It's called hidden twin syndrome, both of your babies are in the same fetal sac and one is larger than the other. The Fetal Anomaly scan clearly picked up the hidden twin, which is much smaller than the other one." Arizona explains to the couple, I would like to admit you for observation for 48 hours just to monitor the smaller baby and do follow up tests.

"Twins don't run in either of our families." Mr Woodson replies still shocked about the news.

"It's not uncommon for women 35 and older to have twins, due to the body producing excess follicle stimulating hormones. Did your doctor mention that to you?" Arizona asks.

"When will you know for sure that both babies are healthy?" Carolyn asks.

"We'll know more tomorrow. They'll get you up to a room and I need you both to just rest and relax tonight." Arizona says positively. "I'll stop by later, once you're settled into your room." She adds smiling.

* * *

"Hidden twin?" Callie replies surprised. "Wow, can you imagine suddenly finding out you're having twins like that?"

"No, it's not very common. Usually the FAS would catch it, but their insurance didn't cover it, so she didn't have one," the blonde explains taking another bite of her salad.

Suddenly it occurs to Callie that Arizona could have had twins, since they run in her family.

"Calliope?" Arizona asks as she reaches out to touch her arm. "Hey?"

"Oh, uh..." she stammers looking away and blinking back the tears that threaten to fall. "Sorry, you don't want to know what just popped into my head." She says shaking it off.

"I do actually. I do want to know." Arizona replies staring at her intently.

Unable to resist those blue eyes, Callie clears her throat and says hesitantly, "You're 35 now and I was just thinking that if you got pregnant, all things considered, that you would have a good chance of twins."

"Are you saying that we should try again?" Arizona asks.

"If we got back together, together. I wouldn't be opposed to trying again. But only if you wanted to try again." Callie replies carefully.

"Do you want to get back together?" Arizona asks.

"I did ask you to move back in last night," Callie reminds her.

"And I really want that, but isn't it too soon? We only just started really talking two weeks ago?" Arizona asks.

"I think the past year has really helped me to understand that what I really want is for us to work." Callie replies.

Blinking back tears of her own, Arizona nods and squeezes Callie's hand.

Callie leans in and kisses her softly, "Let's get out of here," she says pulling the blonde's hand.

* * *

"Oh my god, how long as it been since we did this?" Arizona asks, taking off her lab coat.

"Since we lived across the street." Callie replies hanging her lab coat up in her locker.

"Calliope, are you sure?" Arizona asks again.

"Yes, Arizona. We are doing this." Callie says firmly. Turning around she pulls the blonde to her and kisses her.

"Sofia will be fine in daycare, we'll just be gone for a couple of hours. Then you'll come see your patient, pick Sofia up and come home for dinner." Callie replies holding their bodies together tightly.

Sighing, Arizona is still having difficulty believing that she's moving back into the house today. They talked about it all week and now it's Thursday and they both have the weekend off, so they decided that she would move back in today to give them all weekend to sort it out. Right now they are leaving to unpack Arizona's car and get her settled into the guest room at the house.

* * *

"Hey sorry to call you on your afternoon off, but I've got a consult for you." Alex explains when Arizona answers her phone.

"It's fine, I'll be back this afternoon to discharge Mrs Woodson, can it wait until 3 pm?" She asks.

"Yeah, that should work." Alex says before hanging up. "Okay, she'll be back around 3, you happy?" He asks Amelia.

"Yes, thank you." She says laughing. "I really appreciate it Alex."

Then turning to Edwards, Amelia says, "Let's go. We have two and a half hours."

* * *

At the house, Arizona brings in the last box from her car and sets it down in the guest room. "Callie, that's the last one. Where are you?"

Getting no response, the blonde steps back out into the hall and pauses to listen for the brunette. Not hearing anything, she heads down the hall and as she passes the master bedroom, she hears a familiar song and smiles to herself.

Stepping into the room, Arizona is surprised to see photos from their wedding and vacations. "Callie?". She calls out.

"I was just thinking," Callie says stepping out of the bathroom in nothing but a towel.

Raising her eyebrows, Arizona smiles. The afternoon that she moved into Callie's apartment, Callie had an emergency surgery and when she got home, she surprised Arizona in the shower with that exact phrase.

Moving across the room, Arizona pushes the brunette against the door and kisses her. "You were thinking?" She asks, kissing her way down and undoing the towel as she goes.

"Mmm, yes. That's exactly what I was thinking." Callie says pulling the blonde's shirt over her head.


	7. Chapter 7

"I'm going to be late. I really need to get dressed Callie." Arizona says moving to the edge of the bed.

"Mmmm," Callie says laying back down and watching the blonde get dressed.

"You should probably shower." She says as Arizona heads into the bathroom.

"Oh god, Callie I look like I just had sex," she calls out. "Damn, I don't have enough time to shower." She says drying her face with a towel and grabbing her brush to pull her hair up into a ponytail.

"It's a good look on you." Callie says playfully.

"Stop it. I'm leaving now." Arizona says crossing the room, "but I'll be back and you should probably take a nap." She flashes a mischievous grin and leaves the room.

* * *

"Alex, where's the consult?" Arizona asks entering the doctor's lounge on Peds.

"Go ahead and do your rounds and she'll be up here in about 30 minutes." He says barely looking up from his chart.

Then pulling out his phone he texts, "She's here."

* * *

"Mr and Mrs Woodson, I have excellent news for you. Both babies are doing fine, twin b seems to be responding to the treatment and is gaining weight, which I am sure that you noticed Carolyn." Arizona says nodding to the mother.

"Yes, I feel like I've gained 10 pounds this week." She exclaims.

"You did," Arizona says laughing, "but it was an important ten pounds."

Then moving around the bed to check her heart rate and both babies, Arizona continues, "I've spoken to your OB and we've decided that a weekly check up is important, so we've spoken to your insurance company and gotten it approved. You shouldn't have any more problems with them, I pushed back on how expensive it can get if I have to operate to save those babies, so they've approved my preventive treatment plan." She explains.

"Thank you so much Dr Robbins, excuse me though if I say, I hope I never see you again." Mr Woodson says smiling and shaking her hand.

"I can't blame you for that." Arizona replies, "Now take care of her and follow my plan as closely as you can. Edwards here will get you discharged and on your way."

* * *

"Hey, are you ready?" Arizona asks Alex as she walks up to the nurses' station.

"Um, yeah. Right in here." He says moving to open the door to the exam room.

"There's no one in here." Arizona says turning back around to see Amelia instead of Alex.

Pushing the blonde into the room, Amelia asks, "Are you and Callie back together?"

"Uh why are you asking?" Arizona replies confused.

"Did you move back into the house?" Amelia asks.

"Amelia what the..." Arizona starts to get upset, then she smiles as she spots Nicole at the door.

"Did you forget about our little bet? I think you owe me a hundred for getting back together and another hundred for moving back into the house." Dr Herman says smugly from the doorway.

"Oh my god! I can't even believe this." Arizona says laughing and covering her face with her hands.

"Is she crying, yet?" Nicole asks.

"Yeah, here." Amelia laughs handing Nicole a twenty.

"You're terrible and Amelia, seriously?" Arizona exclaims. "For the record, they are happy tears and perfectly acceptable."

"Whatever, they cost me twenty bucks. Robbins, when did you become so weepy?" Amelia teases.

"Okay, so pay up Robbins. I didn't come here for my health." Nicole says putting out her hand.

* * *

Pulling up to the house with Sofia chattering in the car seat behind her, Arizona still can't believe that they have come full circle.

"Hey Calliope, we're home!" Arizona calls out as they enter the house.

"Mami! We're home!" Sofia says loudly, giggling as Arizona takes off her jacket and hangs it up.

"Something smells wonderful, Sofia let's go check it out." The blonde says as they put take off their shoes and leave them by the door to dry.

"Welcome home." Callie says as the two enter the kitchen. "I made both of your favorites. Broccoli mac and cheese for Sofia and grilled shrimp fettucini with white wine alfredo for us." She says moving to kiss each of them quickly, then lingering a moment before Arizona pulls her in for a better kiss.

"Save that for after dinner, you're going to need it." Callie whispers playfully.

* * *

"I think someone's ready for bed." Arizona says as she washes dishes with Sofia, who is now laying on the floor.

Laughing as she walks around the counter to see the small girl sitting on the floor with her head on her stool. "Sofia, come on mija, time for bed." Callie says pulling the little girl up into her arms.

"When I get back, I want to hear all about your consult." Callie says nudging Arizona's shoulder.

"You knew?" Arizona asks surprised.

"Of course I knew. Edwards tells me everything." Callie says laughing.

* * *

"They totally ambushed me. I don't think I can trust Karev any more, he set me up." Arizona says laughing.

"How was Nicole?" Callie asks as she sits down on the couch and with two glasses of wine.

"Sarcastic as ever. And doesn't miss a thing, it's hard to remember that she's blind." Arizona remarks taking a sip of the wine. "Oh and she made me go to the ATM to pay her the $200."

Laughing Callie almost spits out her wine, "You gave her $200?"

"I lost the bets, so yeah, I paid up." The blonde says setting her wine down and then reaching over to take Callie's glass and set it down too. "Now, where were we when I had to leave earlier today." Arizona asks softly as she pulls the brunette in for a kiss.

Deepening the kiss, Callie wraps her hands in soft blonde curls and pushes the blonde back on to the couch and slips her hand under her blouse.

"God, I've missed this..." Arizona says thickly into the brunette's ear.

"We've got all weekend to catch up." Callie replies as she removes the blonde's blouse.

* * *

 **A/N: Hope you enjoyed this one, it was fun to think that Herman would've bet on them and made Arizona pay up.**


End file.
